The RoundHouse | 12/29/2021 9:22:00 AM
Wichita State baseball is 44-25 over the abbreviated 2020 and the 2021 seasons. That winning percentage of 64 percent shows the Shockers are not where they want to be, but close enough to see the plan works.
Zoom in to the final month of 2021 to get an even better look at how coach
Eric Wedge plans to get the Shockers back to an NCAA regional.
Starting April 30, the Shockers split a four-game series with No. 8 East Carolina, an eventual regional champion, to start an 11-8 finish to the season. They went 7-7 against teams in the top 100 of the RPI, allowing them to finish third in the American Athletic Conference. That is the program's highest finish in three seasons as a member and its first winning record in conference play since 2014, diminished only by a 1-2 exit from the conference tournament.
That stretch included winning three of four games at UCF and a series split with USF, which also reached a super regional.
Wichita State finished its first full season under Wedge with a 31-23 record, 18-13 in conference play after an 8-7 start.
Wedge knows where the Shockers need to improve.
Pitcher
Jace Kaminska, the conference Newcomer Pitcher of the Year, provides a solid starting point for the rotation in 2022. He went 8-1 with a 2.32 earned run average. Building out the rotation is one of the top priorities for 2022.
"The starting pitching needs to be better," Wedge said. "We need to be more consistent on the mound."
Wichita State's strong May started with defense and pitching. It committed 14 errors in those final 18 games -11 of them errorless – to finish with a .978 fielding percentage that ranks as a Shocker record. Over their final 31 games – all in the conference – the Shockers fielded .980 to tie Cincinnati atop the American.
Kaminska will be joined by several key parts of last season's success. Wichita State returns seven position players who started 20 or more games in 2021.
First baseman
Garrett Kocis earned all-conference honors after hitting .286 with 12 home runs in 36 games. Catcher
Ross Cadena is a three-year starter and second baseman
Jack Sigrist hit .321 with 14 doubles. Standout relievers
LJ McDonough and
Ryan Stuempfig are also back.
In May 2021, the Shockers showed they can play with the top of the American. In 2022, they hope to play that way from start to a June finish.
The Roundhouse is counting down the 10 most interesting and significant stories of 2021 for Wichita State athletics. Check back this week for more.
